Phase III

10.1163/ej.9789004162327.i-270.37

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Chapter Summary

By summer 337, the Athenians had initiated a systematic fortification project involving the circuits of Athens and Piraeus as well as the two great structures crossing the plain between those two cities. The extensive program of construction, probably focused on modernizing Athens' defenses in the face of improving methods of assault, was completed several years later. Since the supremacy of Macedon after 338 eclipsed the ability of the Athenians to act independently at sea, the rebuilt Long Walls (III) had no immediate role to play in Athenian military affairs. Built with a view to a future in which the Athenian navy once again controlled the sea lanes, the structures never actually served to maintain the connection between Athens and its harbors during a siege. The phase III Long Walls entered the historical record only as part of purely local activity by a Macedonian force not long after the Lamian War.